Wednesday

May 16, 2018 at 5:48 PMMay 16, 2018 at 5:48 PM

Inspired by the actions of the late United States Attorney General and Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Westford resident Jim Geraghty will work to continue to spread the message and action of a man who cared for the future and well being of children.

Vice Chairman of the board of directors at Robert F. Kennedy Children’s Action Corps, Geraghty, who is also the vice chair of the agency’s board of directors, will serve as the event chair for Embracing the Legacy. This is the action corps's annual fundraising gala where money raised is put back into the work of the organization created after his assignation in June of 1969.

According to the organization's history, the action corps is a Massachusetts-based advocacy group centered around child welfare, juvenile justice, special education, and adoption.

"The organization’s statewide services include educational, residential treatment, and community outreach programs, which support, educate and rehabilitate children, helping them to grow into healthy and productive adult members of their communities," according to the group's history. "The RFK Children’s Action Corps operates several child welfare programs as well as residential juvenile justice programs. Fiercely committed to Robert F. Kennedy’s legacy of unwavering responsibility to the poor and disadvantaged, [the corps] advocates for children and embraces all social, cultural and ethnic backgrounds in order to build healthier families, more responsible citizens, safer communities and a more just society for us all."

Kennedy connection

Geraghty discovered the organization in 2013 when he was finance chairman of the Democratic Party of Massachusetts, with the help of now-Congressman Joseph P. Kennedy III, the eldest grandsons of RFK. Geraghty said he was a guest of the congressman's at the gala that year. He said while he knew of the group, he was in awe of the amount of work its members had done in its almost 50 years of existence.

He said their mission to remove youth from "bad situations," and work to get them out of the justice system and back to their families or into safe situations was one he was willing to put more time and effort into.

Geraghty is also currently the chairman of the Detention Diversion Advocacy Program. The program's staff work to keep youth out of the court system with alternative ways to treat their issues.

He said 70 to 80 percent of the hundreds of children they work with don't return to the system.

Group helps hundreds

The group is centrally located in Boston, where it provides services to 30 to 50 youths. There are other offices as far away as Springfield to help those living in central and western Massachusetts.

"Approximately 300 experienced and dedicated staff members annually serve 800 children and families through the RFK Children’s Action Corps’ various programs, including program directors, teachers, therapists, youth advocates/workers, child care workers and administrators," according to the group's history. "The staff is dedicated to helping children lead healthy and productive lives by working with them to overcome past challenges, while teaching them new life skills."